


Like Sun on Shimmering Snow

by Fauxstales



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, They're cute fawns, and a pretty stone is involved, idk what else to say except they're soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:33:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25718878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fauxstales/pseuds/Fauxstales
Summary: Once a year, leaders and a chosen few from the four Courts of the Fawna meet together to devise a plan of how to complete on of the race’s most ancient of tasks: The Changing of the Seasons. This vital ritual ushers in the transition between the growth and rebirth of the Feywilds, maintaining the rhythm of the earth mother, Gaia, and all of her inhabitants. It was the Fawnas’ job to ensure preparations were made so that the cycle could begin anew.This particular Gathering hosted a rather excited participant: Riku. A young buck who had barely seen five cycles, his fur silver as starlight with long glistening hair to match. He was a Fawn of the Winter Court and this was to be his first time at the Gathering.
Relationships: Riku & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 47





	Like Sun on Shimmering Snow

**Author's Note:**

> What started out as just a cute drawing based on the new League of Legends champion Lillia turned into a conversation with Day about the KH crew as Fawns--which turned into Soriku fawns, which turned into a drawing and eventually this little drabble that sets up an entire world's Lore?? Other characters are implied, but feel free to use your imagination in which Seasonal Court each character is! The originally was based off of a doodle I drew over on my twitter which depicts the boys' first meeting (that was later written in this fic!) 
> 
> You can view the picture here: https://twitter.com/TheFauxsynder/status/1290467921379102720?s=20
> 
> As well as an older Riku concept art here: https://twitter.com/TheFauxsynder/status/1290042721072107520?s=20
> 
> The super cute design/concept for Sora!Fawn was created by @kahazel_! 
> 
> Enjoy!!  
> **EDIT: The fic now has a playlist!! Enjoy here! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7i7UfDJc5pDyvSJQDozeg6?si=uAjn5uIQSh6EBh3JRItwAg

The Gathering.

Once a year, leaders and a chosen few from the four Courts of the Fawna meet together to devise a plan of how to complete on of the race’s most ancient of tasks: The Changing of the Seasons. This vital ritual ushers in the transition between the growth and rebirth of the Feywilds, maintaining the rhythm of the earth mother, Gaia, and all of her inhabitants. It was the Fawnas’ job to ensure preparations were made so that the cycle could begin anew.

This particular Gathering hosted a rather excited participant: Riku. A young buck who had barely seen five cycles, his fur silver as starlight with long glistening hair to match. He was a Fawn of the Winter Court and this was to be his first time at the Gathering. It was a right he had earned through hard work and perseverance as metalworker for his tribe, an armor crafter in training. There had been many unsuccessful winters in which he’d attempted to be the chosen among the yearlings to attend the Gathering. Hours, days, weeks even spent meticulously designing and crafting intricate yet sturdy pieces for the warriors in his Court.

Finally, he had made it--and of course it had to be the year that the Gathering was held in the Summer Court.

There was nothing necessarily _wrong_ with the Summer Court, it was generally no _worse_ than the others, or so he’d been told, but traveling from the frozen south of the Winter Court into the stagnant heat of its opposing force wasn’t terribly appealing. This land was so full of _Life;_ an alien concept when all he could compare it to was the cold, gray, mountainous terrain of his home that was starved of it. It was unsettling. Still, despite the blazing sun and stifling hot wind, he and the rest of his fellow Winter Court Fawns traipsed their way through the Summer Forest.

They were one of the last to arrive, barring a few stragglers from the Autumn Court who were taking their place along the outside rim in the clearing, just beyond a line of redwood trees in the Summer Court Grove. Among them was a large, well-built stag with an impressive rack, 6-points wide on either side reaching up to the heavens. His tan fur contrasted nicely with his dark head of spikey hair and Riku wondered idly what it would be like to have antlers that big. Were they heavy?

His own were certainly eye-catching, curved and white as bone--but Winter stags were not known for their robust features. Theirs was a race of silent poise, grace, and tactical planning. They never entered a battle for which there was no self-gain, and it was their role within the Court of Seasons to bring an end to Gaia’s verdant beauty. It was the way Gaia intended: all things had to end. Riku only wished he didn’t have to be the arbiter. 

Not too far off from the tall buck lay a beautiful doe, her steely blue legs stretched elegantly out alongside a rose-colored yearling, not too much younger than himself. The two were stringing flowers together into crowns while they waited for the meeting to begin.

_Must be from the Spring Court._ Riku thought, taking in the wide array of colors and characteristics of all the Fawna crowding the rim.

Suddenly his musing came to a screeching halt when he noticed his vision blurred by a mess of deep brown fur. Before he could react, the sensation of lips alighted on his nose, a bright string of laughter following promptly after. Caught completely unawares, Riku’s ears flicked forward, the hair along his spine standing on end while his eyes attempted to focus on his assailant.

“Welcome to the Summer Court! My name’s Sora! You’re from the Winter Court, right? I’ve never seen someone with fur as white as yours before-It’s really pretty. Your antlers look nice too! Mine haven’t really grown that much yet but Kairi says it’s because I don’t eat my clovers like I should. Is that a crown on your head? Are you a prince or something?? What’s your name?”

Namine had warned him that the Summer Court Fawns were very friendly, but she had never mentioned anything about them being so _cute-!_ At home, Riku was known for being quiet yet well-spoken for his age, but the longer he took in the features of the Fawn shooting him rapid-fire questions (those auburn eyes, a wreath of leaves woven around his antlers and upper limbs, the dark freckles that spotted his face and arms) the words left him faster than the frost carried off on the southern wind.

“What’s wrong? You guys don’t speak a different tongue, do you?”

Riku finally snapped out of his daze enough to squeak out the word “Riku” just in time for the Gathering horn to call.

“Oh! Guess that’s our cue! See you later!” the Fawn replied, literally prancing off up and over other Fawnas seated there as he dodged between the crowd of on-lookers to join the rest of his Court. 

Riku’s ears flattened against his head, absentmindedly tracing his movements until he could no longer see the cream-colored spots and that ridiculously fluffy tail. It along with the rest of their spunky owner was lost in a sea of earthy-toned figures.

He snorted, frustrated, at himself and at the perfectly terrible timing of it all. His first meeting with a Fawna outside of his Court and it went about as well as he had expected--Well, the kiss was a surprise.

His legs moved on their own as he made his way back to more familiar faces, mind wandering back to relieve the moment once more. The sheer warmth that had radiated from the kiss, from the Summer Fawn’s entire being, had been so overpowering...yet inviting all at once.

He was used to living in a land of cold and distant landscapes and their equally cold and distant inhabitants. Sora--that was his name wasn’t it? Sora’s presence had felt like the first ray of sunshine on a crisp winter morning. Riku crossed his arms in front of him, gripping his opposite shoulders lightly as the feeling of a strange _chill_ came in his absence.

* * *

The meeting was all-together uneventful; introductions, recognitions of achievements within each Courts’ communities, duties for each of the seasons for this Cycle, ending with reminders and debates on where next year’s Gathering would be held. Riku felt himself growing more and more restless with every passing second. For _years_ he had waited and worked towards the opportunity to join the elders here at the Gathering, but that _one_ chance encounter had consumed his thoughts so much he could barely concentrate!

The Gathering horn sounded twice, a signal of the end, and no sooner had its somber note ceased than the cheerful tune of pan flutes and pennywhistles started. After all, the business portion of the Gathering was honestly just an excuse for the feasting and festivities that followed after. It didn’t take long for Riku’s elders to get caught up in the merry making, giving him enough time to slip away from all the hustle and bustle to clear his thoughts.

Quiet was hard to come by in a land of drink and dancing, but Riku managed to settle at a nearby pond on the outskirts of the thicket where the music merely drifted across more so than drowned out his senses. The sun had just begun to dip down below the never-ending line of trees as twilight fell upon the Summer Court. Bits of light flickered in and out in what Riku assumed was a spark of Summer magic, but upon closer inspection, discovered they were creatures instead.

He raised his hand out as the insect rested atop it, its tiny legs moving along the curve of his knuckles.

“Woah you caught a firefly! That’s good luck, ya know!”

Startled by the voice, Riku whirled around, accidently tossing the bug as he went. Concerned, his eyes searched for his little living light, breathing a sigh of relief when he spotted it floating in the air just beside the ear of a familiar Fawn.

_Sora._

“Sorry! Didn’t mean to sneak up on ya. I talked with Roxas and he said that you guys speak the same language so I’m guessing you’re just shy? Anyway, “ he paused, extending out a hand while his tail swished back and forth excitedly behind him, “It’s nice to meet you, Riku!”

“You remembered my name?”

Sora blinked, shoulders drooping only a bit before a wide smile spread across his face.

“Of course I did! I’ve got a mind like a dragon, ya know! I never forget anything.” he snorted proudly, pawing at the ground with his foreleg. “Except that one time when I forgot my own birthday….but ya know, it happens.”

“The creature. The fire…?”

“Firefly!”

“Yes, that. We don’t have those in the Winter Court. How does it...Create light?”

Sora tilted his head, spotted ears twitching, confused by Riku’s question. His eyes shifted to a point just behind Riku overlooking the pond, watching the twinkling bugs reflect like stars upon its surface. “I honestly don’t know. They existed long before the Fawna here did. But I heard, before we discovered how to use magic, the Summer Court trapped them in lanterns as a light source! Isn’t that silly?”

Riku frowned, not amused. Tales of the Summer Fawns had always depicted them as flippant and selfish; this only proved to justify those stories. Sora stiffened, a nervous chuckle escaping as his arms came to rest behind his short, sharp antlers.

“WE--We USE to. They’re free now, ya see? It’s a lot better that way, I think. To be free to go and do what you please…”

With a flick of his ear, Riku turned his full attention on the Summer Fawn, closing the gap between them in a few graceful strides.

“Before the Gathering. You-” Riku couldn’t help the blood rushing to his cheeks, cursing his pale skin for giving it away. “Why did you…?”

“Kiss you? That’s just how we say hello! This is your first time at the Gathering, right? I had to make sure you were given a proper Summer Fawn welcome!”

Riku studied Sora for a long moment, skeptical until he was convinced the Fawn was telling the truth, lowering his eyes to the ground. “Thanks. I guess.”

Sora seemed relieved with this response and cautiously took a step closer.

“So that crown you’re wearing? Are you really a prince?” Sora gestured to the ornate headpiece that wrapped around Riku’s head behind his ears. The obsidian shone a slight purple hue in the light, small droplets of sea-glass hung from delicately fashioned curves along its ends. Riku had spent days shaping them until they were perfect.

“I’m not a prince, and it’s not a crown. It’s a circlet. I made it myself--for the Gathering.”

“WHAT??” His volume caused Riku to stand straight at attention, as if preparing for an attack. “You MADE it?? Wow! You must be really good at armor crafting!”

At this, Riku subconsciously puffed out his chest, standing a bit taller even though he was already well over a head above the other Fawn. 

“Heh, I guess so. It’s what I had to do to prove I was worth being chosen to come to the Gathering.”

Sora’s eyes sparkled with delight, which was only accented by the occasional glimmer of fireflies and the moon that was staring to peek over the tree line.

“You’re so cool, Riku! Can you teach me how to do it too??”

Riku couldn’t help the short laugh that escaped.

“What? I can’t just _teach_ you how to craft armor. The festival only lasts three days. Besides,” he stomped the ground with his back hoof, “this is a Riku original. There’s no way you could imitate it.”

The amber Fawn’s whole body sank, ears flattening out to the sides, lip quivering, eyes becoming wide hazel saucers as they looked up pathetically at Riku.

“Awwwww!! But it would be so awesome!! I’m a real quick learner, and I bet I’d get it down super fast if I had a teacher like you!”

Warmth flooded Riku’s cheeks again so he turned his head away to hide behind his pale curtain of bangs. Suddenly, an aqua gleam came into view. The tanzanite jewel embedded in the bead that secured his braid in place dangled just below his chest ruffle, catching the moon in its facets. His gaze shifted from the bead and then back to Sora, repeating the gesture a few times until his mind decided for him.

He lifted his hand to his hair wordlessly, threading it through the braid until the bead came loose, his long locks unraveling along his shoulders. He then stepped over to Sora (who was still pouting), taking his hand and firmly placed the gem in his palm.

“Here. This bead was one of the first things I crafted. It helped inspire me to improve my skills and challenge myself to make the pieces I can today. Maybe….It’ll help inspire you too.”

Sora’s eyes grew wide, bringing the glittering bead up to his face to inspect. He shifted it over and over in the light, nudging it gently with his pointer finger and watching in fascination as shards reflected on his hand. He let out a breathless “wow”, closing his fist securely around it, lowering it just above his heart.

The hint of a smile curved at the edges of Riku’s lips. It was rare for someone to admire his work so genuinely. In fact, it was a bit overwhelming. But then again, everything about Sora was like a ray of sunshine and-- for as odd as it sounded-- this Winter Fawn was ready and willing to bask in it.

“No need to thank me. You were kind enough to welcome us into your home for the Gathering. It’s the least I could--”

During his speech, he noticed Sora had gotten _dangerously_ close and helplessly witnessed the Fawn stepping up on the tip of his hooves to plant a soft kiss on Riku’s cheek.

His usually nimble legs tripped over themselves as he attempted to take a step back, righting himself swiftly enough that he hoped his company wouldn’t noticed. He gawked at Sora for an explanation.

“W-Was that another one of your ‘Summer Greetings’...?”

Sora grinned bashfully up at him, the hand that held the bead still flush tight against his chest tuft.

“Nope! It’s a Sora original,” he responded, adding in a light-hearted wink that made Riku’s heart flutter.

Riku stumbled over an unintelligible response just as the Gathering horn blared; it was the end of the first night’s festivities.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Riku!!” Sora called, and in the Winter Fawn’s confusion, had seemingly teleported 50 yards away in the blink of an eye. He waved with his entire body and then turned, leaping back towards the denser part of the thicket.

Riku’s feet compelled him to follow suit till he forcibly dug his dewclaws into the dirt. Clenching his fist, he let out a low sigh and turned his attention up to the sky filled with so many flickering, firefly stars. They still had two days, didn’t they? Knowing Sora, he was bound to run into him again. Until then…

“Sweet dreams.”


End file.
